Food breader

ABSTRACT

A breading machine for dispensing a coating material onto a food product includes a breading chamber, a continuous conveyor for transporting food products through the breading chamber, a hopper including at least one downspout and a sloped bottom for dispensing coating material onto the food products, a hopper conveyor positioned within the hopper. At least one of an angular position or a vertical position of the hopper conveyor is adjustable to accommodate a variety of free flowing and non-free flowing coating materials. One or more air knives may be positioned in the downspouts to fluidize the coating material to alleviate bridging and/or build-up of the coating material within the downspout.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation of U.S. application, Ser. No.11/351,447, filed on 10 Feb. 2006, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,448,343. Theparent application is hereby incorporated by reference herein in itsentirety and is made a part hereof, including but not limited to thoseportions which specifically appear hereinafter.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to a breading machine for selectively dispensing acoating material or breading onto food products which may be coated withbatter and breading before being cooked. More particularly, theinvention is directed to a breading machine which may be readilyconverted between dispensing free flowing and non-free flowing coatingmaterials as well as distributing a variety of coating material moreefficiently so as to avoid a build up of coating materials within thebreading machine.

In the field of large scale or commercial production of prepared foods,many food items are typically provided with a breading or coating priorto cooking. The coating materials are generally dry particulatematerials of fine flour and/or seasonings, Japanese style or “J-” crumbsdisplaying a variety of irregular particle shapes and sizes, or meals,such as cracker or corn meals, which include hard and roughly sphericalparticles of various sizes. Each of the different coating materials hasits own characteristics which affect their distribution and handlingwithin the breading machine. Flour based coating materials which may bewheat or other grain flours include seasoning, spices, shortenings andother ingredients. These materials typically include particles having afine, dust-like consistency which tend to pack or build-up causingbridging or blocking of the breading machine openings. Japanese orJ-crumbs typically include modified wheat flour with small amounts ofyeast, salt sugar, vegetable oils and other additives. The J-crumbsinclude particles which look like shredded pieces bread having particlesizes ranging from half an inch to fine, dust-like particles with adistribution of sizes in between. J-crumbs are not uniformly shaped, arevery delicate, and may not withstand the rigors granular coatingmaterials can endure. J-crumbs also self-bridge over larger openingsmore than other common granular coating materials.

In view of the different characteristics of the coating materials,breading machines are typically designed to handle an individual coatingmaterial. Alternatively, breading machines constructed to accommodatedifferent coating materials often involve time-consuming and/orcomplicated processes to convert from dispensing one type of coatingmaterial to another. Large scale food producers desire a breadingmachine which can handle large volumes of food products while providinga breading or coating on both the top and the bottom of the foodproducts. Thus, breading machines have become larger and more complexand are adapted to run at higher speeds for longer periods of time.Additionally, the handling of various types of coating materialsrequires that the breading machine distributes fine particles such asflours as well as J-crumbs without damaging the more fragile J-crumbs.

In order to distribute the coating material within the breading machine,one or more conveyors may be positioned within a hopper to sprinkle orspread the coating material onto a food product conveyed beneath anopening in the hopper. Generally, the conveyors are mounted in a fixedposition within the hopper making removal or repositioning of theconveyors difficult. Thus, cleaning of the breading machine may behampered due to the fixed location of the conveyors.

A common problem in the operation of breading machines is the bridgingof coating material across openings within the breading machine whichreduces and/or stops flow of the coating material. Such bridges orblockages necessitate shutting down the machine to clear the build-upand enable continued operation of the machine. This is particularly aproblem when the breading machine is operated at higher speeds forbreading a larger volume of food products. Frequent stoppages and/orcomplicated conversion processes reduce throughput of finished productsand increase the costs associated with operating the breading machines.

In view of the above, there is a need or desire for a breading machinewhich is easily and rapidly convertible from dispensing one form ofcoating material to another.

There is a further need or desire for a breading machine having improvedcoating handling capabilities which reduce and/or eliminate bridging,build-up or blockage of coating materials with the machine.

There is a still further need or desire for a breading machine which maybe readily cleaned.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In response to the challenges discussed above, a breading machine havingimproved coating material handling and which is readily convertible fromdispensing one form of coating material to another has been developed.

The breading machine of the invention includes an enclosure defining abreading chamber, a continuous conveyor for transporting food productsthrough the breading chamber, a hopper adapted to dispense a coatingmaterial onto the food products and a hopper conveyor positioned withinthe hopper. The hopper includes at least one downspout and has adownwardly sloping bottom wall. At least one of an angular position anda vertical position of the hopper conveyor is adjustable and the hopperconveyor may be removable. The hopper conveyor may include a pivotmounting and the angular position of the hopper conveyor is adjustableabout a horizontal axis of the pivot mounting. At least one air knifemay be positioned within the downspout.

In another embodiment, the breading machine includes an enclosuredefining a breading chamber, a continuous conveyor for transporting foodproducts through the breading chamber, an upper hopper including twodownspouts adapted to dispense coating material onto the food products,a removable hopper conveyor positioned within the upper hopper, a sidehopper and an inclined auger for transporting the coating material fromthe side hopper to the upper hopper. The upper hopper includes a rearwall, two downspouts formed in part by the rear wall, a front wall, afront gate disposed along a bottom edge of the front wall, and a bottomwall which slopes downward from a front edge of the downspouts towardthe front gate. The removable hopper conveyor includes a pivot mountingwhich may be positioned adjacent a front edge of the bottom wall of theupper hopper. At least one air knife is positioned within eachdownspout. At least one of an angular position and a vertical positionof the hopper conveyor is adjustable. The breading machine may alsoinclude a sifter plate and/or a coating material recirculation system.

In another embodiment, the breading machine includes an enclosuredefining a breading chamber, a continuous conveyor for transporting foodproducts through the breading chamber, a pair of downspouts fordispensing a coating material onto the continuous conveyor, at least oneremovable air knife positioned within each downspout, an upper hopperadapted for dispensing the coating material onto an upper surface of thefood products, a removable hopper conveyor positioned within the upperhopper, a side hopper for collecting and/or storing the coatingmaterial, a cross conveyor positioned beneath the continuous conveyorfor transporting excess coating material to the side hopper, an inclinedauger for transporting the coating material to the upper hopper and thepair of downspouts, and a discharge chute for dispensing the coatingmaterial into the upper hopper and the pair of downspouts. The airknives deliver low pressure air into the downspouts to fluidize thecoating material within the downspouts. The hopper conveyor includes apivot mounting positioned adjacent a front gate of the upper hopper andan angular position of the hopper conveyor is adjustable about ahorizontal axis of the pivot mounting. The breading machine may furtherinclude a sifter plate positioned beneath the discharge chute. Thesifter plate, side hopper and/or inclined auger may be removable. Thecross conveyor may include a sifting conveyor for removing coatingmaterials having a select particle size.

With the foregoing in mind, particular embodiments of the inventionprovide a breading machine for efficiently producing a variety of coatedfood products.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a breading machine in accordance withone embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view of an upper hopper in accordance with oneembodiment of the invention.

FIG. 3 is a side view of an upper hopper in accordance with anotherembodiment of the invention.

FIG. 4 is front perspective view of an upper hopper in accordance withone embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 5 is a rear perspective of an upper hopper in accordance with oneembodiment of the invention.

FIG. 6 is a side view of a breading machine in accordance with oneembodiment of the invention.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a breading machine in accordance with afurther embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 8 is a rear perspective view of a breading machine in accordancewith one embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed to a breading machine which is readilyconvertible from dispensing one type of coating material to dispensinganother type of coating material (i.e., a grade change) onto foodproducts. In this breading machine an adjustable conveyor is providedwithin a hopper adapted to dispense coating material onto food products.The angular and/or vertical position of the hopper conveyor within thehopper may be adjusted and the hopper conveyor may be removable tofacilitate cleaning and grade changes.

Referring to FIG. 1, a breading machine 10 includes an enclosure whichdefines a breading chamber 12. A continuous conveyor 14 transports foodproducts to be coated into the breading chamber 12. An upper hopper 16is positioned above the continuous conveyor 14. The continuous conveyor14 rides along a support pan 22 which forms a bottom surface of thebreading chamber 12. The upper hopper 16 includes at least one downspout18 and a hopper chamber 20.

Suitably, the continuous conveyor 14 includes a pervious, continuousconveyor belt, such as a wire mesh belt, which allows excess coatingmaterial to be removed from the belt. The continuous conveyor 14 isdesigned to fully support food products on at least one surface but isformed to allow a coating material to readily fall through the beltstructure. Suitably, the support pan 22 blocks openings in thecontinuous conveyor 14 to maintain a layer of coating material on anupper surface of the belt as it travels through the breading chamber 12.

Referring to FIGS. 1-3, the hopper 16 includes a rear wall 24 whichforms, at least in part, a rear wall of the downspout 18. The hopper 16further includes a front wall 26 and downwardly sloping bottom wall 28.Bottom wall 28 is joined along a ridge 30 to a front wall 32 of thedownspout 18. Suitably, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the upper hopper 16may include a pair of downspouts 18 having openings 34 which aretransversely opposed from each other across the width “W” of thebreading chamber 12. As shown in FIG. 5, the hopper 16 includes a pairof side walls 36 which forms side walls for both the hopper chamber 20and the downspouts 18. The downspouts 18 further include a pair ofangled interior side walls 38. As can be seen in FIG. 5, the angledinterior side walls 38 give the hopper a generally pants-like silhouettewhen the breading machine 10 is viewed from the rear and promotemovement of the coating material disposed within the downspouts towardthe openings 34.

Referring to FIG. 4, the upper hopper 16 may include a front gate 44positioned along a bottom edge 48 of the front wall 26. Suitably, thefront gate includes a plurality of openings 52 to dispense the coatingmaterials disposed within the hopper chamber 20 in a fine sprinkleacross the width W of the breading chamber 12.

Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, a hopper conveyor 40 is positioned withinupper hopper 16. In accordance with certain embodiments, the hopperconveyor 40 may be removable. Suitably, the hopper conveyor 40 ispositioned within the hopper chamber 20 and includes a pivot mounting 42to secure the conveyor in the hopper. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, thepivot mounting 42 may be positioned adjacent a front edge 46 of thebottom wall 28 and/or adjacent the front gate 44 which is positionedalong a bottom edge 48 of the front wall 26 of the upper hopper 16. Inaccordance with certain embodiments of the invention, a verticalposition of the pivot mounting 42 may be adjustable. At least one of anangular position or a vertical position of the hopper conveyor 40 isadjustable. For example, referring to FIGS. 2-4, an angular position ofthe hopper conveyor 42 may be adjusted by pivoting the hopper conveyor40 about a horizontal axis 50 of the pivot mounting 42. The hopperconveyor 40 may be positioned within the upper hopper 16 in any suitableangle located between the bottom wall 28 and the front wall 26 of theupper hopper.

Thus, the hopper conveyor 40 may be positioned within the upper hopper16 parallel to the bottom wall 28 of the hopper as shown in FIG. 2. Sucha configuration may be desirable when non-free flowing coating materialssuch as flour-based coating are being dispensed to assist in moving thecoating materials down toward the front gate 44 and to reduce and/oreliminate bridging or packing of the coating material within the upperhopper 16.

In another embodiment, the hopper conveyor 40 for may be positionedwithin the upper hopper 16 parallel to the front wall 26 of the hopper.Such a configuration may be desirable when free-flowing coatingmaterials, such as corn or cracker meals, or Japanese style or “J-”crumbs are being dispensed by the upper hopper 16. The hopper conveyor40 may be operated in a manner which pulls coating materials upward awayfrom the front gate 44 of the hopper and redistributes the coatingmaterials back onto the bottom wall 28 of the hopper to prevent bridgingor blocking of the coating materials. If J-crumbs are being dispensed bythe upper hopper 16, the hopper conveyor 40 may be removed entirely,shifted to a vertical position above the front gate 44 where theconveyor does not contact the J-crumbs, or operated in manner which doesnot damage the more fragile J-crumb particles.

In any of the foregoing embodiments, the direction of the hopperconveyor belt path may be reversible to either push or pull the coatingmaterials toward or away from the front gate 44. Additionally, thehopper conveyor may be operated continuously or intermittently toprevent build-up and/or blockage of coating materials within the hopperchamber 20.

Referring again to FIG. 1, an inclined auger 54 is positioned adjacentthe upper hopper 16 and the continuous conveyor 14. Suitably, theinclined auger transports coating materials from a side hopper 56 to theupper hopper 16. Coating materials are dispensed from the inclined auger54 to both the downspouts 18 and the hopper chamber 20 via a dischargechute 58. Suitably, the inclined auger 54 may be operated on acontinuous or an intermittent basis to deliver coating materials to theupper hopper.

In another embodiment, the breading machine 10 may include a motorizedconveyor (not shown) for transporting the coating material from theinclined auger 54 into the upper hopper 16.

In another embodiment, the inclined auger 54 may be removed or detachedfrom the breading machine 10 to facilitate cleaning and/or storage. Inanother embodiment of the invention, the inclined auger 54 and the sidehopper 56 may be in the form of a removable module which may be detachedfrom the breading machine 10 to facilitate cleaning and/or storage ofthe module.

In another embodiment, the inclined auger 54 may be attached to thebreading machine 10 in a fixed manner. As shown in FIG. 8, the inclinedauger 54 may be attached to the breading machine 10 by one or more fixedmounting brackets 80.

Referring to FIGS. 2-4, at least one air knife 60 is positioned withineach downspout 18. Suitably, the air knives 60 deliver low pressure airinto the downspouts 18 to fluidize the coating material to reduce orprevent bridging or build-up of the coating material within thedownspout 18 which may impede flow out of the openings 34. Such aconfiguration may be used, for example, when non-free flowing coatingmaterials such as flour-based coatings are being dispensed by the upperhopper 16. Suitably, the air knives 60 may be removable from thedownspouts 18 when not in use or when the breading machine is beingcleaned.

As shown in FIGS. 2-4, the air knife 60 may include a tube 62 having aslit or slot therein through which low pressure air is introduced intothe downspouts 18. Suitably the tube 62 is positioned to extend across awidth 64 of a downspout 18 parallel to the path of the continuousconveyor 14. Suitably, the tube 62 may have any desired cross-sectionsuch as, for example, circular, square or oval. Suitably, the tube 62may have any shape and/or length to conform to the configuration of theupper hopper 16. Advantageously, the positioning of individual airknives 60 may be adjustable to accommodate a variety of coatingmaterials and/or flow directions of the coating materials.

Referring to FIG. 6, the breading machine 10 may include a source of lowpressure air such as a mechanical blower 66 which may be connected tothe air knives 60 via an air lines 68 connected to an air knife port 70.Alternatively, compressed air may be delivered to the air knives 60 at alow pressure. Suitably, air is introduced into the downspouts 18 at aflow rate of about 1 cfm to about 100 cfm (about 28.3 liter/minute toabout 2830 liter/minute). Suitably, air introduced into the downspouts18 at a pressure of about 0.1 psi to about 100 psi (about 0.007 kg/cm²to about 7 kg/cm²), about 0.5 psi to about 50 psi (about 0.035 kg/cm² toabout 3.5 kg/cm²) or about 1 psi to about 5 psi (about 0.07 kg/cm² toabout 0.35 kg/cm²).

In another embodiment, the breading machine 10 may include a coatingmaterial recirculation system. For example, referring again to FIG. 1,the breading machine may include a cross conveyor 72 positioned beneaththe continuous conveyor 14 adjacent a front edge 76 of the support pan22. Suitably, the cross conveyor 72 includes a pervious continuous belt74 which travels a path which is perpendicular to the path of thecontinuous conveyor 14. The cross conveyor 72 carries excess coatingmaterial which falls through the continuous belt 14 into the side hopper56 where the coating material can be stored or recycled to the upperhopper 16 via the inclined auger 54. Suitably, the cross conveyor 72 maybe a sifting conveyor including a sifter plate 74 positioned above thecross conveyor, such as is known in the art, that is capable of removingcoating materials having a select particle size.

In another embodiment, the breading machine 10 may include a coatingmaterial recirculation system as described in commonly owned U.S. Pat.No. 5,506,455 to Ritz, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated byreference.

In another embodiment, the breading machine may include sifter plate 77positioned beneath the discharge chute 58 and above the downspouts 18,as shown in FIG. 7. Alternatively, a motorized conveyor (not shown) maybe positioned an outlet of the inclined auger 54 to evenly spread thecoating material into the upper hopper 16. Such configurations may beused, for example, when the inclined auger is delivering Japanese styleor “J-” crumbs to the upper hopper 16 to evenly distribute the coatingmaterial between the downspouts 18 and across the width of the hopperchamber 20. Suitably, the sifter plate is removable when not dispensingJ-crumb coating material or for ease of cleaning.

In operation, the breading machine 10 produces coated or breaded foodproducts in the following manner. The continuous conveyor 14 passesbeneath the at least one downspout 18 where a layer of coating materialis dispensed onto an upper surface of the continuous conveyor 14.Thereafter, battered and/or unbattered food products are fed onto thecoating material on the continuous conveyor 14 via an infeed conveyor(not shown) thereby coating a bottom surface of the food products. Thepartially coated food products are then conveyed beneath the hopperchamber 20 where coating material is dispensed onto a top surface of thefood products thereby forming encapsulated food products. As theencapsulated food products exit the breading chamber 12 they pass underone or more soft pressure rolls (not shown) which press the coatingmaterial around the food products. As the continuous conveyor 14 passesbeyond the front edge 75 of the support plate 22, one or more airknives, curtains or blowers (not shown) positioned adjacent the frontedge 75 of the support plate 22 direct air onto the encapsulated foodproducts to remove excess coating materials which fall onto the crossconveyor 72 below. The fully coated food products are then transportedto a discharge end 78 of the breading machine 10 where they may betransported to another machine, such as an oven or fryer, for furtherprocessing.

While in the foregoing specification this invention has been describedin relation to certain preferred embodiments thereof, and many detailshave been set forth for purposes of illustration, it will be apparent tothose skilled in the art that this invention is susceptible toadditional embodiments and that certain of the details described hereincan be varied considerably without departing from the basic principlesof the invention.

1. A breading machine for dispensing a coating material onto a foodproduct, comprising: an enclosure defining a breading chamber; acontinuous conveyor for transporting food products through the breadingchamber; a hopper adapted to dispense the coating material onto the foodproducts, the hopper comprising at least one downspout and a downwardsloping bottom wall; and a hopper conveyor positioned within the hopper,the hopper conveyor movable from an operational first position to anon-operational second position, wherein in the operational firstposition the hopper conveyor is disposed over the bottom wall to move acoating material through the hopper.
 2. The breading machine of claim 1,wherein in the non-operational second position the hopper conveyor isdisposed away from the bottom wall to allow a second coating material tocontact and move along the bottom wall.
 3. The breading machine of claim1, wherein the hopper conveyor is parallel to the downward slopingbottom wall of the hopper in the operational first position.
 4. Thebreading machine of claim 3, wherein the hopper conveyor is disposedvertical above a front gate of the hopper in the non-operational secondposition.
 5. The breading machine of claim 1, wherein the hopper furthercomprises a vertically positioned front wall and a front gate along abottom edge of the front wall, and the hopper conveyor is positionedparallel to the front wall of the hopper when in the non-operationalsecond position.
 6. The breading machine of claim 1, wherein at leastone of an angular position or a vertical position of the hopper conveyoris adjustable.
 7. The breading machine of claim 1, wherein the hopperconveyor is removable.
 8. The breading machine of claim 1, wherein thehopper conveyor comprises a pivot mounting securing an end of the hopperconveyor within the hopper at a lower end of the downward sloping bottomwall.
 9. The breading machine of claim 8, wherein a vertical height ofthe pivot mounting is adjustable.
 10. The breading machine of claim 8,wherein the angular position of the hopper conveyor is adjustable abouta horizontal axis of the pivot mounting.
 11. The breading machine ofclaim 10, wherein the pivot mounting is positioned adjacent a bottomedge of a front wall of the hopper.
 12. The breading machine of claim 1,wherein the hopper comprises two downspouts, each of the two downspoutsformed in part by a rear wall of the hopper and a front downspout wall,and the downward sloping bottom wall extends downward from a ridge at atop of the front downspout wall.
 13. The breading machine of claim 1,further comprising: the hopper including a front wall, a rear wall, afront gate positioned along a bottom edge of each of the front wall andthe bottom wall, a downspout formed in part by the rear wall, whereinthe bottom wall slopes downward from a top edge of the downspout to thefront gate; a side hopper; and an inclined transport device fortransporting the coating material from the side hopper to the upperhopper.
 14. The breading machine of claim 13, further comprising a pivotmounting positioned adjacent a bottom edge of the bottom wall, whereinan angular position of the removable hopper conveyor is adjustable abouta horizontal axis of the pivot mounting.
 15. The breading machine ofclaim 13, further comprising a coating material recirculation system.16. The breading machine of claim 15, wherein the coating recirculationsystem comprises a sifting cross conveyor.
 17. The breading machine ofclaim 13, further comprising a sifter plate.
 18. A breading machine fordispensing a coating material onto a food product, comprising: anenclosure defining a breading chamber; a continuous conveyor fortransporting food products through the breading chamber; a hopperadapted to dispense the coating material onto the food products, thehopper comprising at least one downspout with a downward sloping bottomwall; a pair of downspouts for dispensing the coating material onto thecontinuous conveyor; the hopper including a front wall having a frontgate positioned along a bottom edge of the front wall, wherein thebottom wall slopes downward toward the front gate; a hopper conveyorpositioned within the hopper, the hopper conveyor movable from anoperational first position to a non-operational second position; a pivotmounting positioned adjacent the front gate of the hopper, wherein anangular position of the hopper conveyor is adjustable about a horizontalaxis of the pivot mounting; a side hopper for collecting and storing thecoating material; a cross conveyor disposed beneath the continuousconveyor for transporting excess coating material to the side hopper; aninclined auger for transporting the coating material from the sidehopper to the upper hopper and the pair of downspouts; and a dischargechute for dispensing the coating material to the hopper.
 19. Thebreading machine of claim 18, further comprising a sifter platepositioned beneath the discharge chute, above the cross conveyor, or acombination thereof.
 20. The breading machine of claim 18, wherein theside hopper and the inclined auger comprise a detachable module.